Most people who've spent time in a major city are
familiar with the uninvited cat call. Whether you have been the target
or you've watched the event unfold, many of us have heard one individual
or another solicit a passerby -- most often a woman -- to "give them a
little smile" or "cheer up, baby."

While some may combat the unsolicited attention with a cold stare, Brooklyn-based artist Tatyana Fazlalizadeh has an alternative way of addressing the problem. In a project titled "Stop Telling Women to Smile," Fazlalizadeh places portraits of women in public spaces, encouraging victims of gender-based street harassment to fight back.

The series began last year when Fazlalizadeh was finishing a mural
project in Philadelphia. She'd been contemplating how to address the
issue of street harassment for some time, having experienced years of
daily occurrences herself. After considering the medium of oil painting
-- her primary practice -- she eventually decided to channel her ideas
through public art.

Fazlalizadeh recruited friends and colleagues to help make STWTS a
reality, drawing her subjects in strong, even confrontational poses that
are meant to "humanize" the faces of women in the public space. The
portraits are accompanied by lines of text that speak to the harassers
and offenders who aren't often called out. "My name is not Baby," one
caption reads. "Women are not seeking your validation," quips another.

"I asked [friends] if they'd like to participate in the project, and
all of them having street harassment as a consistent issue in their
lives agreed and were happy to be a part of it," Fazlalizadeh explained
to The Huffington Post. "For most of them, we sat and had a conversation
about their experiences and what it is they'd like to say back to
harassers. I used those conversations as inspiration for the text
underneath their portraits."

Fazlalizadeh first posted her drawings in Philadelphia and Brooklyn, but has since created a Kickstarter campaign
to help fund a broader endeavor. She wants to travel to Baltimore,
Boston, Atlanta, San Francisco, Miami, Kansas City, Los Angeles and
Chicago to meet and draw women living in the rest of the country, using
sites like Hollaback and StopStreetHarassment.org to help navigate the various communities.

Thus far she has primarily focused on the experience of women, but
she's open to expanding the project to men who have encountered street
harassment based on their gender or sexual orientation as well.

"As the work gained attention, I realized how many different types of
people can relate to this and have stories to tell. I've had
conversations with men at STWTS related events who wanted to talk about
their experiences with street harassment," Fazlalizadeh recounted. "I
know it happens, and it's important, and it's something I may take on in
the future. Right now though, I want to focus on women -- of varying
backgrounds -- to really tackle the ways in which our bodies are
sexualized and mistreated in the public space."

The STWTS Kickstarter campaign has 26 days to raise the $15,000
Fazlalizadeh seeks. According to the site, a portion of the funds will
be allocated to working with a filmmaker to document the project.

As for those individuals who might not believe that gender-based
street harassment is a problem, Fazlalizadeh had the following to say:

"There are always those who want to tell women that their
experiences are not valid or not important whenever they speak up. For
me, as a black woman, this is particularly true. Wanting the basic right
of feeling comfortable and safe and not sexualized as I walk out of my
house is very much worth prioritizing."

"There's also the point that gender-based street harassment easily
lends itself to more conspicuous issues such as rape and domestic
violence," she added. "It's a matter of control over women's bodies. And
it's a serious issue to address."

since men can't handle rejectionor frowns, maybe i should start carrying gold star stickers and treats to encourage them. for real though, this kind of thing really demeans us all as a society. what is so hard to comprehend ?

and where are the men of bhm to chime in on this? cause i'm interested in hearing their experiences with male friends or that of any female relatives or significant others to whom this has happened (advances, cat calls, telling women to smile). what are y'all's points of view on this?

since men can't handle rejectionor frowns, maybe i should start carrying gold star stickers and treats to encourage them. for real though, this kind of thing really demeans us all as a society. what is so hard to comprehend ?

and
where are the men of bhm to chime in on this? cause i'm interested in
hearing their experiences with male friends or that of any female
relatives or significant others to whom this has happened (advances, cat
calls, telling women to smile). what are y'all's points of view on
this?

I don't have much of an opinion other than
what some of you have already mentioned, and it's been better stated
than anything I'd say. I agree that the focus of these articles and
advice columns should be on the men- particularly their objectification
and entitlement - instead of any rules a woman should learn in order to
avoid harassment.

I think by now, through anecdotal evidence and statistical information that the duty to change behavior should be on the men causing the problems, not the women being harassed.

A
starting point, I think, are campaigns like in the OP that confront men that
think they are owed anything, a smile, an explanation, a word from a
woman. It has to start early though. I can remember as early as elementary
school, a girl that wasn't considered "nice" to a boy would get treated a
certain way. Even if the terms "bitch, prude, stuck up" etc weren't
being used, the template was being mastered on how to treat girls that
don't placate boys.

It's crazy to think that even very young
boys have these ego/entitlement issues but I def believe it's there, and
if confronted there, can help stop that seed from growing into
misogyny, domestic violence, sexual harassment, sexual assault, and
hypermascunility.

I wish I could add more regarding personal
experiences, and I hate to be that guy that says it isn't me, but I
honestly have never personally dealt with this sort of thing. Not unless
I'm going way back to grade school. I've asked gals out. Some that smile. Some that frown. Some that I think have been giving me signals. Some that I was completely trying my luck with. My batting
percentage isn't the greatest. I take my L and keep it moving. *shrugs*

(I've broken out of "friend zone" a few times before though...so that L might not always be permanent)

I can't lie..sometimes I be deep in thought and when someone tells me to smile, it makes me realize I'm not smiling and I love to smile..so I smile. Even if it is just on the inside because those inside smiles make a big difference that a physical smile I your face can't. So, I don't mind when they tell me to smile. If they ask if they can have a smile, that is a different story lol

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